Alyeskan war
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Alyeskan war or as it's known as the “Alyeskan war for Independence”. Was a war for independence of the Alyskan national republic in which the forces of the Russian national republic fought against the Alyskan military forces first and later the Association of North American Nations? The conflict started on the 6th of August 1978 with the Russian air campaign across the country wiping out the nation's limited air defenses and combined with amphibious landings and air landings captured most of its cities. It was followed by a period of intense fighting between the Russian military and ANAN which fought hard to back its new ally, it is considered the most significant modern naval conflict and would see a scale unseen. Through the summer of 1978, ANAN managed to push up north liberating much of Alyska and even launching an invasion of the Aleutian Islands and the Kamchatka peninsula, the war ended on the 8th of December 1979 with Russia recognizing Alyskan independence.
Background
Since the national reconciliation failed Russia her national republic party and thus the state were prone to political infighting. All of this did not stop the increased calls for the democratization of Russia by the public, this eventually led to a referendum for political reforms which was passed by overwhelming public support forcing the government to act in 1976.
These reforms led to the so-called “Bureau of Audit” being established and increased transparency in terms of financial matters. This a change that would not be underestimated as it was at the time when there was no transparency, the levels would still compared to other European nations be deemed reclusive but they were a marked change for Russia. Eventually, local elections were held in the ANRs as a semi-test stage for the larger democratization of Russia, these prove to be effective and the first large-scale free elections were planned for 1978,
In the background of all these prior events the Alyeskan national republic, which was one of the first places for democratization to happen, declared its independence. This was due to a variety of reasons, primarily a seeming disconnect between it and Moscow and a growing sense of national and “American” identity. These things had over the past few decades grown slowly but steadily in Alyeskan society, what made it more rapid was considered that Alyeskan men were sent to fight in Russian wars. All of it combined with similar activities across the former Russian empire made it to many Alyeskan people a possibility that independence might succeed.
Thus with popular support on the 5th of August 1978, the Alyeskan ANR leader was overthrown by the local military forces that were pro-independence. It was followed by rapid proper elections and it declared its unilateral independence from Russia, which in its words was still ruled by a military junta posing as a farce democracy. The Association of North American Nations which since the 1960s had grown more anti-European or rather anti non-American as well as having a vested interest in removing one of its “strategic challengerS” from the continent moved in. The nations of the Association of North American Nations reconciled the young nation. They immediately admitted Alyeska as its newest member, in many instances forgoing the more “proper” induction procedures and timeframes which normally would last decades.
All of this was followed rapidly by the now democratic Russian national republic declaring war against Alyeska, or rather in its words “getting a wayward region back in line”. ANAN did not sit idle and immediately deployed troops to Alyeska.
Course of the war
Russian invasion (8th of August 1978)
“If I had to say anything about the first months of the war, it was simply put getting our shit together, the Russians hit us hard and unexpectedly we were scrambling to pull it all together.” - Commander of the 53rd Slag Korps Lieutenant General Joost Wessink
The war began on the 8th of August 1978, when Russia launched an attack against ANAN forces that were moving into the newly independent Alyeska. The attack caught the ANAN forces by surprise, ANAN intelligence, especially the Tussenland Directory of Intelligence had expected a potential counterattack but had miscalculated the date by 13 days. It was later revealed that both the NNL intelligence agency and the Mexican intelligence agencies had kept information from Tussenland in this regard.
Russia her initial objectives were simple, reclaim Alyeska for Russia and secure its borders. It was hoped that the swiftness of the attack combined with the force would lead ANAN political leadership to hesitate and thus withdrawal as a conflict would be too costly. Thus it would lead to the status quo remaining, for Russia this was important it was around this time that Russia was in political chaos, and its military while still a power to be reckoned with, was feeling the effects of the political and civil disorder within the nation. It was thus considered important that the attack was swift.
At first, it seemed to go well, Russian forces caught the ANAN forces, primary units from New England and Mexico off guard. They were pushed south over the course of 4 months, a combination of ANAN her inability to mobilize its forces quickly, air power and surprise allowed the Russians to push ANAN out of the “core Alyeskan territories” and to the southernmost region of the nation. IT was there that ANAN after 4 months was able to allocate its proper war-fighting potential, in the form of the 53rd Battle Corp (Nieuw Nederland) and the 92nd Corp (New England) that were able to halt the Russian advance, slow it down and stabilize the front, while Mexican navy and Tussenland air force elements maintained operational air and sea supremacy in the areas of operation.
By the 1st of December 1978, the front was such that ANAN forces had managed to secure the western border regions with Tussland, the southern areas of Alyeska. At the same time the Russians despite experiencing a great deal of setbacks, had managed to take the core regions of Alyeska as well as maintain control of the island Shiskov, which allowed Russian forces to maintain constant attacks upon ANAN positions.
Capture of Shishkov Island (June 1978)
“In wargames before the conflict…we always assumed that the Russians would fight hard but at some point would break…we were wrong…those Ruskies they did not break .. not the slightest.” - Major-General Raul Miralles, of the 332nd Marine Division
It was in June 1978, that the time had come, at least in the eyes of the military strategists of ANAN, to deal with Shiskov Island. It was a large heavily fortified island that was a base of operations for constant sorties against ANAN forces in the south, west and north. It also proved to be the principal area from which counter-offensives were launched. In other words at least to the Strategists of ANAN, to liberate Alyeska, the island would need to be captured.
It was well known at least that this would not be easy, intelligence had estimated that a total of 5 divisions would be present on the island, some 130,000 men in total, including a strong air defence network. This in combination with it being easy to resupply by the Russians for holding the island allowed the Russians to hold at bay ANAN naval efforts. All of this was hampered by the small distance between the mainland and the island itself. It was thus understood by all that to capture the island a heavy price was going to be paid. It was thus that this task was given to Lieutenant-General Joost Wessink, of the Korps Mariniers of the Nieuw Nederlandt Staatse Vloot, he was principally tasked due to his reputation of being an efficient soldier and ability to plan large offensive operations, but mainly he was politically able to ensure no conflict was present between his commanders. It was thus on the third of June 1978, after spending two months getting his forces ready, training them up in New France for this operation, that Operation “Wodka Slachter” was launched.
D-Day June 1978
It was on the 6th of June 1978, at precisely 05:31 local time, under the cover of intensive hostile fire from the Russian islands that the first landing craft landed upon the shores. It was Marinier second-class Klaas Weademan, that first left the amphibious landing craft, it was that he was the first casualty of Operation Wodka Slachter. He was killed by soldiers that were dug into the woods, it was after he was killed that pre-sighted artillery opened fire upon the shores. What followed was a landing operation that cost the lives of some 7,000 marines to break the initial shore defences, defences that were some 11 meters from the sea. It was brutal but it was at Kaap beach that the first breach was made.
It was in the breach that the marines of the 1st division of the Korps Mariniers, were able to secure the first island, while it was cleared rapidly f Russian troops, they withdrew to other parts of the island, for the entire island was a massive fortress. While they did clear the island the Russians kept on the artillery sorties upon their positions and thus fighting quickly went underground and devolved into brutal hand-to-hand combat. It was slow and brutal but in the end, the Marines were able to link up the numerous beaches and create a foothold, at around D-day +11. Fighting was brutal but over the following month the entire island was cleared out but only after thousands of Marines were killed in the end tens of thousands of Russians were killed in the fighting, while nearly 90.000 Russians were taken as prisoners of war.
